63 Three Gods and One human: Iridescent chest...
The world turned and spun, never halting. While the chaos caused by Allen and the gods was absurd, more things were happening elsewhere.
Within an Oscorp laboratory, an act against nature was being committed: the genetic manipulation of spiders. Although they claimed it was for the good of humanity, the question remained of when a human should stop in their ambition to control and alter everything for their own desires and convenience.
A group of men, Oscorp shareholders guided by a scientist, were accompanied this time by entrepreneurs interested in Oscorp's advancements.
"Well, Number 23 looks good, although there are slight mutations in Numbers 34 and 54," said the scientist.
Another scientist looked worriedly at an empty container. "Where is it?!... Oh, false alarm, here it is, Steatoda nobilis, also known as the noble false widow. It's less dangerous than the black widow, but it gets the job done... this little one is quite clever, tends to find ways to hide, and is hard to locate."
"We're not here to talk about spiders; we want to know how useful they are," an irate shareholder interrupted the scientist.
The scientist coughed. "Well, we've conducted tests on animals with satisfactory results, but we're far from achieving an actual mutation."
"That's not what Norman said. We've spent hundreds of millions on experiments that only worked halfway. Norman may be the president, but it's our money at stake."
The shareholders were furious about Harry Osborn's incident; the stocks kept plummeting, prompting some shareholders to sell while others sought ways to save the company. This led them to the facilities to personally inspect the genetic manipulation advancements Norman boasted about in meetings.
Many realized that Norman wasn't as honest with them or tended to embellish his achievements. It wasn't a problem when the company was at its peak, but Norman's gaining a bad reputation, made the shareholders lose faith.
A slim man in a suit stepped forward, eyeing the modified spiders. "Gentlemen, there's no need to get upset. The White House is willing to pay handsomely if anything catches our attention."
The shareholders smiled, their humor returning.
...
Norman broke a mirror in the office bathroom upon learning that the shareholders' meeting, they had planned to sell Oscorp advances behind his back.
"Those bastards!" Norman growled.
"I told you so. You built this company, and those leeches have been living off you for a decade. Now that things are a bit shaky, they stab you in the back... you know what to do, just let me out."
"No!!"
...
Elsewhere, a young Peter Parker hesitantly entered a workshop/laboratory.
"Sir? Dr. Otto Octavius?"
From above, an overweight man with round glasses descended, suspended in the air by a pulley, the man seemed in trouble.
"Hello, kid, you must be Peter Parker? I could use a hand."
Peter hurried to help Otto descend. He needed a part-time job, and what better place than a laboratory?
Otto grinned. "Well, you're hired!"
"Huh?!" Peter looked incredulous.
"Yes, an assistant who saved me from a nasty fall deserves an honorary interview. Otherwise, I might as well retire from the business. Now, help me calibrate this gadget, and maybe in a month, I'll have the sun in the palm of my hand, hahaha."
(A/N: There will be Spiderman, but it won't be Peter Parker. Don't worry, Peter won't be sidelined; he'll just live a less tragic life. He deserves it.)
...
In DC, time flowed differently due to the absence of the temporal anchor. Long before the Doomsday incident, many things happened, including a young Diana, who would later be known as Wonderwoman, practicing with her Amazon sister in their homeland, Themyscira.
They belonged to a new generation that had never seen a man and didn't understand why men were so vehemently prohibited in their land. But they assumed that their queen and Diana's mother, Hippolyta, had her reasons.
"Diana, do you think men are monsters as they say?" asked a blonde Amazon.
"Legend says they thrive on destruction and conquest; it's not worth thinking about those savages. They must be like hairless gorillas," Diana sheathed her sword and gazed at the sky. She wouldn't admit to being curious about meeting a man, but she wasn't rebellious enough to defy her mother for it.
"Hahaha, I wonder if I could make a man's coat?"
"Don't be silly; we might never see one," Diana turned and walked toward the city.
...
For the first time, Loki felt pressure when he wielded the destroyer, akin to holding the world's pillar. But while he imitated Atlas by stopping the giant spear falling from the sky, Allen had other plans.
"The cut that slices the universe" is not as simple as a mere dismantle; it requires preparation, and essentially, Allen shouldn't be able to do it with his skill level. It's only possible because he currently has all six eyes activated.
"I hope Gojo sensei won't be angry," Allen thought with regret.
It's ironic and even an insult that he uses the six eyes to recreate a technique designed to defeat Satoru Gojo. But at this moment, it's all that Allen can think of to surpass the destroyer's defense...
Loki felt himself trembling, knees almost touching the ground, but a wave of courage surged through him, and he pressed higher. "Do you know why this armor is called, the destroyer?!" The spear in Loki's hands began to shatter, stunning everyone.
Or almost everyone; Allen remained focused, ignoring Loki's feat. Loki felt a chill that broke his concentration. His gaze shifted towards Allen.
"What are you trying, mortal?!"
Allen looked at him coldly. "Who knows..."
Loki's nature had always been more discreet; he worked in the shadows and had a great instinct for when to hide, flee, or simply retreat.
Loki reviewed his previous actions and realized he was acting recklessly, something that didn't align with him. Loki was behaving like Thor, the previous Thor.
Setting aside his pride, Loki teleported far from Rhongomyniad. Instantly, Artoria halted the attack to avoid creating a city-sized hole in the ground.
"You're not the only one who can teleport."
Like a haunting curse, Allen appeared behind Loki while completing his technique. Loki's gaze said it all, even if he didn't know Allen's plans, he could feel the fear invoked by experience and instinct.
"It's my destiny..."
"I don't care."
Without mercy, Allen cleaved Loki in half. Unexpectedly, anger filled Allen's eyes as Loki's laughter echoed beside him. Loki struck Allen, but it was an attack halted by infinity.
Loki had momentarily fooled Allen once again, but simultaneously couldn't conjure another illusion powerful enough to deceive Allen's infinity, causing both their attacks to falter.
Artoria summoned her most treasured sword into her hand. It was a shining, beautiful blade with blue engravings that lifted golden ash into the air.
"Excalibur..."
With a voice almost a whisper yet firm and cold, the sentence was given. The sword, crystallizing the concept of victory, shot its cut towards Loki.
Loki switched targets and halted the energy attack but was pushed relentlessly through the ground.
"You still don't understand!" Loki gritted his teeth as he used his hands to crush the attack, causing a tremor felt throughout the earth. "Right now, you can't stop me!"
Loki wore a furious look as veins bulged in his neck.
Thor appeared above Loki with a massive attack of dozens of lightning bolts from the sky. "Look at yourself, Loki, that thing is affecting your mind."
"SHUT UP!" Loki shoved Thor with a shout; immediately, Allen used a Crown Saber to pierce Loki's defense. However, what he cut wasn't flesh but Loki's magic.
For a moment, Loki lost control of the armor and felt as if it were trying to expel him.
"What?, do you think only you have tricks?!" Allen taunted as if returning Loki's words from a moment ago when he managed to pierce the infinite.
"Mortal!"
Allen withdrew, and Artoria took his place with the sacred spear in hand, charging towards the destroyer. Loki had to stop his opponents while controlling the armor, in the same situation as Allen when aided by Artoria. However, unlike Allen, Loki had no allies; he made sure of that himself.
"Don't underestimate me!" Loki fired the destroyer's beam towards Artoria, who blocked it with Rhongomyniad.
"You live for an empty desire, god, even now, you still call the man you deny as family 'brother' and the god you deny as father 'father'." Artoria's words were daggers to Loki.
Loki hadn't realized the contradiction in his words and actions.
"Shut up!"
Loki increased the destroyer's beam power. The destroyer's beam doesn't have specific potency; in the MCU, it was said to have a hundred thousand times the power of Ironman's repulsors, in the old comics, it was able to cut Mjolnir in a single strike, although currently, Mjolnir is more indestructible than it was then. One thing's certain: this destroyer could easily pierce through a thousand planets with that beam.
Allen sensed the danger and teleported, grabbing Artoria around the waist and moving her away from the attack.
Meanwhile, Rhongomyniad was split in half, and the beam continued its path along the ground. Thor grabbed Loki by the neck from behind, preventing the earth from being cleaved in two.
"You worry too much about Midgard, brother... Thor!"
"Loki, these people have nothing to do with your rage!"
"And what?! That's what I am, that's what everyone expects of me, to be the monster!" Loki broke free and turned to strike Thor in the face, "Look at me!" Loki's fists continued to brutally pound Thor, "I'm the monster under the bed!! Mothers use me to scare children at night!!"
"I knew you were the firstborn, but father said we were both born to be Kings!"
Loki dealt Thor a blow to the stomach, knocking the wind out of him and making him spit blood.
"I thought that was a sign he hadn't decided who'd be the next Odin!"
The next blow fractured several of Thor's ribs.
"I spent centuries trying to prove I was better than you!"
Loki grabbed Thor by the hair and kneed him, breaking Thor's nose.
"I did my best, but he never saw me as more than a frost giant. I couldn't get the throne!"
"Loki..." Thor could barely utter words.
"FOR HIM, FOR ALL OF US!"
Allen intervened upon seeing Thor's state, stopping the attacks with his infinity and pulling Loki away.
"Human..." Loki looked at Allen with rage.
Simultaneously, Artoria attacked with Excalibur, pushing Loki away. Allen turned to see Thor, physically and mentally shattered. Without hesitation, Allen activated the cursed inverse technique to heal him. Healing others with this technique was even more difficult than using it, but Allen could manage at this moment.
Allen pondered for a moment, knowing the situation wasn't good and he needed something more to defeat Loki, but what?!
Would he bet on the gacha roulette? Improve the system or himself with the fragments the system was crystallizing at this moment.
'I haven't opened the Iridescent Chest yet...'
That option was a gamble that could kill him faster than Loki, but at this moment, Allen was using the Limitless technique; he should be able to survive even if he loses the bet and the Iridescent Chest turns out to be dangerous.
Allen watched Artoria fight; while Loki was much more powerful as a mage, he lacked close combat experience compared to Artoria. As if she sensed Allen's thoughts, she glanced sideways, surprising him. It was as if her emerald eyes said, 'Leave it to me.'
Allen smiled ironically as he shook his head; sometimes, it seemed that many people knew more about him than he did himself.
With a serious gaze, Allen opened the system interface, and the Iridescent Chest appeared before him. It was a chest glowing with various mixed colors; it might appear beautiful, but Allen, having experienced a near-fatal encounter with a crimson chest, couldn't help feeling apprehensive.
However, it was what he had to do... Loki was a formidable, cunning, and skilled enemy; he wouldn't allow himself to be killed so easily, either by his Domain Expansion or some technique.
[Host...]
"I'll be fine..."
The lid of destiny opened, and a flash visible from outside the galaxy traversed the universe.
...
Allen opened his eyes in the white room again, but this time, he was nervous because he knew he would meet someone even more powerful than Satoru and Sukuna.
*Yawn*
Allen froze upon hearing someone behind him.
"What's wrong? Aren't you going to turn around?"
Allen stiffly turned to see his visitor. With a peculiar appearance, a humanoid purple cat lay lazily on the floor. It yawned sleepily before its eyes fixed on Allen. Allen's entire body felt a cold sweat as he was looked at.
"God of Destruction... Beerus," the words barely escaped Allen's mouth out of fear.
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A/N: Four more chapters on Patreon.I'll have the fifth in a few hours ;3
Patreon.com/Mr_Aizen
